HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA Position Lessened by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its position in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,173,404 shares of the company’s stock after selling 254,941 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.51% of HCA Healthcare worth $500,105,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HCA. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,152,408,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in HCA Healthcare by 6,115.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 911,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $388,309,000 after acquiring an additional 896,437 shares in the last quarter. Viking Global Investors LP grew its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare by 58.5% during the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 1,872,133 shares of the company’s stock worth $717,214,000 after purchasing an additional 690,773 shares in the last quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD acquired a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare in the third quarter valued at $106,605,000. Finally, HRT Financial LP bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare in the 2nd quarter valued at $81,596,000. 62.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at HCA Healthcare

In related news, EVP Michael S. Cuffe sold 1,500 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.09, for a total transaction of $747,135.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,944,194.27. The trade was a 4.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer Berres sold 8,020 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.58, for a total transaction of $4,126,931.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,993 shares in the company, valued at $6,171,357.94. This represents a 40.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,214 shares of company stock worth $7,797,595. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HCA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Leerink Partners increased their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $507.00 to $573.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. KeyCorp set a $503.00 price objective on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of HCA Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $425.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, December 15th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $423.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, HCA Healthcare presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $537.73.

HCA Healthcare Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:HCA opened at $537.15 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $504.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $468.21. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a twelve month low of $310.18 and a twelve month high of $552.90. The company has a market cap of $120.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.34.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $8.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.37 by $0.64. The company had revenue of $19.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.97% and a negative return on equity of 409.11%. HCA Healthcare’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.22 EPS. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.100-31.500 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from HCA Healthcare’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. HCA Healthcare’s dividend payout ratio is 10.15%.

About HCA Healthcare

HCA Healthcare is a for‑profit operator of healthcare facilities headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1968, the company owns and operates a network of hospitals and related healthcare facilities and has grown through organic expansion and acquisitions to become a large provider of inpatient and outpatient services.

The company’s core activities include the operation of acute care hospitals, freestanding surgical and emergency centers, and outpatient clinics. HCA’s services encompass inpatient care, surgical services, emergency medicine, diagnostic imaging and laboratory testing, and various outpatient and ambulatory care offerings.